


Truth Be Told

by themorewedance



Category: Call the Midwife
Genre: F/F
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-12-20
Updated: 2016-12-20
Packaged: 2018-09-10 17:03:54
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,477
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/8925193
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/themorewedance/pseuds/themorewedance
Summary: Set in present day, Delia brings Patsy home to finally tell her family about her relationship.





	

**Author's Note:**

> Hi guys! So I started working on this since the season 5 finale aired in the US, but didn't get very far and it just sat in my google drive for months. I finally forced myself to sit down and finish it! Hope you guys enjoy it! Feel free to leave comments!! I'm always looking for feedback :)

They pulled up in front of the Busby residence, and Patsy noticed Delia’s hands grip the steering wheel tighter, her knuckles quickly turning white. All the color was drained from her usually rosy face. Delia kept her hands tight on the wheel, staring straight ahead, her eyes full of fear.  
“Dels, we don’t have to do this today. I can walk around the city, or go back to the hotel, while you visit with your family. Maybe telling everyone at once isn’t the best idea.” Patsy placed her hand delicately atop her girlfriend’s tense shoulder. Delia immediately shook her head.  
“No Pats. I have to do this.” She turned to face Patsy and took her hands. “I love you, and it’s time my family knew that.” Patsy couldn’t help but smile, but still had reservations. Without any more words, they both climbed out of the car. As they walked towards the house, Delia grabbed Patsy’s hand and held on for dear life.  
“I’m scared, Pats.” Patsy gave Delia’s hand a quick squeeze and kissed her on the forehead.  
“Everything will be fine, love. Everything will be just fine.” 

The couple approached the front step and Delia hesitantly reached for the door, but Patsy took a few steps back, admiring the house. The Busby house was a large stone cottage, with rows of plants and colorful flowers lining the perimeter of the house. There was a large tree in the front yard, which Patsy recalled from Delia’s stories about childhood, like when she broke her arm after falling from a high branch.  
“So this is it, this is where you grew up.” Patsy grinned as she took in the surroundings, picturing Delia running around the front yard as a child, and helping her mother plant the neatly trimmed rose bushes.  
“It’s not much, but it’s home.” Delia commented. She admired her girlfriend’s beauty as Patsy strolled around the front yard. “Come on then!” She reached out for Patsy’s hand and walked towards the door. Delia reached out with a shaking hand and grasped the doorknob, slowly pushing the door open to reveal the foyer.  
They stood in the foyer, preparing themselves for what was about to happen. They could hear conversations and laughter coming from another room in the house, and Patsy’s stomach churned with nerves. She looked at Delia’s face, which told her that her girlfriend was feeling the same way. Patsy looked on either side of her, gazing around at what she could see of the house. The foyer was painted a brilliant shade of yellow, and there were vases and pots full of the same flowers Patsy noticed outside. A sitting room and dining room were on the left and right respectively, both rooms seeming like they were rarely used. In front of them was a staircase to the second floor, and a hallway which presumably led to the kitchen.  
“Delia? Is that you, Cariad? We’re in the kitchen!” They could hear Delia’s mother call from the kitchen.  
“Coming, Mum!” Delia’s voice trembled as she spoke, and she took deep breaths to remain calm. She took Patsy’s hand and led her down a hallway, pausing momentarily to look in a large mirror on the wall. She tucked loose strands of hair behind her ears, and fixed the collar of her blouse. Patsy gazed at her girlfriend head to toe, admiring her outfit. Patsy had given Delia the rose colored blouse and printed midi skirt as gift on Delia’s last birthday, and she was thrilled when Delia chose to wear the outfit to Sunday dinner. When Delia lingered in front of the mirror, Patsy intervened, stepping behind so that Delia could see them both in the mirror. Patsy placed her chin on Delia’s shoulder, and her hands on Delia’s waist.  
“Dels, love, you look beautiful. Everything is going to be fine.” Delia took one last deep breath and continued down the hallway, which Patsy noticed was lined with childhood pictures and made a mental note to look at them more closely before they left. 

Delia was the first one to enter the kitchen, and Patsy could hear the loud and enthusiastic greetings from her family. Patsy quickly snuck into the room behind Delia and was not expecting the crowd that was present. When Delia said her family would all be there, Patsy severely underestimated what she meant. The kitchen was filled with aunts, uncles, grandparents, and 5 or 6 children running around. Delia’s father, who Patsy remembered meeting shortly after Delia’s accident, walked over to Delia and gave her a big hug.  
“This is the first Sunday family dinner you’ve come to in what, a year?”  
“I’m sorry Dad, you know I always want to come, it’s just hard to get here from London, especially with my busy work schedule.” Delia had barely finished her sentence before her mom jumped into the conversation.  
“Well if you had just stayed here in Wales, you would always be with us.” Delia rolled her eyes and groaned dramatically, reaching out to kiss her mom on both cheeks. Delia’s mother noticed Patsy standing in the corner of the room, and greeted her, inviting her to take a seat at the table in between two of Delia’s aunts. Delia sat down across the table, between her mother and and an uncle.  
“Delia, who is your friend?” One of Delia’s aunts was seated at the other end of the table, large glass of wine in hand, studying Patsy.  
“Oh… right, sorry. Everyone, this is Patsy. Patsy is a friend, from London.” Patsy could hear the trembling in Delia’s voice, and noticed the way her shoulders fell as she spoke.  
“Well it’s very nice to meet you Patsy!” An uncle standing in the back of the room raised his wineglass to her.  
“Thank you, it’s very nice to meet you all as well.” Patsy said warmly, before taking a rather large sip of wine from the glass that Mr. Busby had just placed in front of her.  
\------  
The dinner had been going well. Throughout the evening, dishes upon dishes of delicious food had been placed on the table, and Patsy didn’t think she could eat one more bite. She was also feeling a little tipsy, and hoped no one had noticed the amount of wine refills she had since she sat down at the table. She kept an eye on the clock and watched the time pass slowly, with Delia never revealing her secret. Delia’s family was a loving bunch, who cared deeply for her, but was very traditional, and Patsy now understand why Delia had been so hesitant to tell her family the truth. She could see that Delia was disappointed in herself, and Patsy tried not to let her own disappointment be apparent.  
The dinner conversations were simple; they talked about the weather, politics, family gossip. The conversation took a turn, however, when towards the end of the evening, one of Delia’s aunts asked how Patsy and Delia had met. Delia looked at Patsy as a sign for help.  
“We were roommates when we were nurses in training,” Patsy announced, “and we’ve been best friends ever since.” She flashed a smile at Delia, and she felt Delia rub her foot up against Patsy’s leg.  
“Even when Delia was in the hospital, Patsy sat by her side until she woke up.” Delia’s father raised his glass to Patsy before he continued speaking. “We’re lucky Delia has such a good friend to look out for her in London.”  
“Patsy and I are more than friends.” Delia blurted out suddenly. The only sounds following her words were a few gasps, and the clang of her mother’s silverware hitting the table. At first, Delia looked surprised with herself that she finally spoke up, but then she immediately looked down at her lap, fearful of the reactions of her family. Patsy could feel her body twinge with nerves, and she was thankful now that she had alcohol in her system for this conversation. She discreetly scanned the room to gauge how the family was taking the news. The dinner party remained dumbfounded, staring at each other with a loss for words.  
“What-whatever do you mean, dear?” Her dad looked at Delia, perplexed.  
“Patsy and I… we... “ Delia struggled to find the words, again turning to Patsy to complete her sentence.  
“We’re in love. We’ve been dating for several years.” Patsy said the words as fast as she could, keeping her gaze on Delia. She could see a small sigh of relief from her girlfriend, and Patsy too felt a weight off her shoulders. She heard Delia’s mother scrambling to put words together.  
“Dating? You mean you’re…”  
“Yes Mum. Patsy is my girlfriend. I’m… I’m gay.” Delia looked up at Patsy, smiling brighter than she had all day, her rosy cheeks fully restored. Her family members shifted uncomfortably in their seats, unsure of what to do next. Patsy noticed the aunt sitting on her right side take a large sip of wine. The room was so quiet that you could hear a pin drop. Delia’s mother sat there mortified. Suddenly her dad jumped up from his chair, and started collecting dishes from the table.  
“Well, I think it is about time to call it a night. We all have work in the morning after all.” The rest of Delia’s family murmured agreements and quickly got up from the table and muttered goodbyes before quickly leaving the room. Patsy and Delia got up to help Mr. Busby collect the rest of the dishes in silence and her mother just sat in her seat, not hiding the obvious shock she was in. Mr. Busby approached Delia and gave her a hug.  
“I’m glad you came tonight. We all missed you.” Mr. Busby slowly backed out the room, trying to think of more words to say.  
“It was nice to see you again, Patsy.” He then disappeared down the hallway, and Patsy and Delia heard footsteps going up the stairs. Delia turned around to face Mrs. Busby, who had finally gotten up from her chair. Delia went to speak to her mother, but before she got a chance, Mrs. Busby quickly muttered,  
“Goodnight, Cariad.” She left the room, not even making eye contact with her daughter. Delia started to go after her mother, but Patsy grabbed her hand.  
“Let’s go back to the hotel, love.” Patsy led Delia down the hallway, forgetting to pay more attention to the pictures on the wall. They stood on the step outside the house and Patsy leaned forward and kissed Delia.  
“I’m so proud of you, Deels.”  
\-----------

Patsy walked out of the hotel bathroom, wringing out her dripping hair with a towel.  
“Well, it was a bit awkward but overall I think that went pretty well.” She tossed the towel onto the armchair and smiled at her girlfriend, but then stopped in her tracks. Delia sat at the edge of the bed, quickly wiping the tears from her face so that Patsy wouldn’t notice.  
“Deels? Babe…” Patsy sat down on the bed next Delia, wiping away the remaining tears with her fingers.  
“Did you see the look on my mum’s face when we told her. She was mortified.” Patsy noticed the deep disappointment in Delia’s voice, and cursed the mother in her head.  
“She couldn’t have been all that surprised though, Delia. I mean, we went to Paris together. It’s the city of love for goodness sake.” She chuckled when she spoke but Delia remained somber.  
“I know she must have at least suspected. But to actually hear the words…” Her voice trailed off and Patsy could tell she was holding back a sob. Patsy brushed Delia’s hair to one side, and delicately left a trail kisses down her neck.  
“She may be shocked now, yes, but she just needs time to process it.” Delia nodded her head in acknowledgment and before breaking down into tears. Patsy pulled her girlfriend into a hug and held her firmly, softly rubbing her back. Through her tears and muddled voice, Patsy heard Delia mutter,  
“We shouldn’t have done with this Pats.” She released herself from Patsy’s embrace and stood up. “I wasn’t ready, and you shouldn’t have pushed me.” She wiped away tears from her eyes and started pacing about the room.  
“Delia, love, I didn’t push you to do anything. I told you we didn’t have to do this today. I told you several times.” Patsy sat there on the bed, confused by her girlfriend’s sudden and frustrated accusations.  
“Not today, Pats. Just… just in general. You’re always making little comments about how you wish my parents could just know already so we could be free do what we wanted, and how you hate having to be secretive.” Patsy jumped up from the bad and grabbed Delia’s hands so that she would stop pacing, and look her in the eyes.  
“Because I did! I hated not being able to post a picture of us with a sappy comment, and I hated not being able to meet your family. But Delia, please, I wasn’t trying to force you to out yourself, I was merely trying to be honest.” Delia stood there with tears freely rolling down her face, trying to force herself to speak.  
“I’ve just disappointed my parents, Pats. You just… you don’t understand.” Delia’s voice was quiet and trembling, and Patsy felt her heart break. She finally dropped Delia’s hands and turned around, so that Delia couldn’t see that tears were threatening to fall from her own eyes.  
Delia reached for Patsy’s hand but she pulled away.  
“You think you’re disappointing them by being gay?” Patsy turned around to face Delia now, her vision occluded now with tears. “Are you embarrassed… to be with me?” Her voice cracked as she tried to say the words. Delia’s face fell, and she immediately embraced her girlfriend.  
“No no no, Pats, of course not. That’s not what I’m saying. I love you.” She placed a kiss on Patsy’s lips, and sat down on the edge of the bed, gesturing for Patsy to sit next to her.  
“I love you so much, Pats. I could never be embarrassed by you. It’s just... My parents have always had such high expectations for me. They wanted me to marry a nice man and settle down in Wales and pop out some grandchildren, and be able to brag about me to their friends. They have a very conservative social circle, Patsy. Being gay is still a taboo thing in their world.” Patsy looked down at her lap and nodded.  
“We can still give them grandchildren, you know.” She smiled playfully, and Delia’s worried face suddenly relaxed. Delia reached up and cupped Patsy face face her hands, leaning in for a kiss.  
“I love you, Patience Mount.”  
“I love you too, Delia Busby.”


End file.
